FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 21, 2014
CONTACT: Governor's Press Office, 850.717.9282, media@eog.myflorida.com
GOVERNOR SCOTT ANNOUNCES ALMOST $16 MILLION INVESTMENT FOR COAST TO COAST CONNECTOR PROJECT
TALLAHASSEE – Governor
Rick Scott today announced the 11 new projects that will be funded this year to
help advance the Coast to Coast Connector, which will provide a safe and
continuous multi-use trail from the Gulf of Mexico to the Atlantic. The
Department of Transportation will invest $15.9 million to complete 11 phases of
separate trail segments in nine counties. This new funding is in addition to
the more than $26 million that has already been invested by the Florida
Department of Transportation (FDOT) for the Connector project over the next
five years.
Governor
Scott said, “This $15.9 million investment will help to complete 11
sections of the Coast to Coast Connector which will help to bring more tourists
to our state, and create jobs for families in our state. Our tourists
increasingly desire new ways to explore this beautiful state and the Coast to
Coast Connector will do just that as the only trail in America connecting the
Gulf to the Atlantic.”
Brevard
County
-
Brevard
Co. Line to Aurantia Road - $5.6 million
- Canaveral
Ave to Max Brewer Causeway and Max Brewer Causeway to Atlantic Ocean - $100,000
Hernando
County
-
Suncoast
Trail to existing Good Neighbor Trail - $1 million
Lake
County
-
SR
33 to Silver Eagle Road - $1.5 million
Lake/Sumter
County
-
Van
Fleet State Trail to Villa City Road - $1.3 million
Orange
County
-
Seg
1 ‐ Hiawassee Rd to Pine
Hills Road - $530,000
-
Seg
2 ‐ Clarcona‐Ocoee Rd to Seminole
Co. Line - $1.1 million
Pasco
County
-
Pinellas/Pasco
Co. Line to North of SR 54 - $460,000
Pinellas
County
-
East
Lake Rd/Keystone Rd intersection to the Pinellas/Pasco Co. Line - $3.9 million
Seminole/
Volusia County
-
Wayside
Park over US 17/92 Bridge and US 17/92 Bridge over Spring to Spring Trail -
$100,000
Sumter
County
- Withlacoochee
State Trail to Van Fleet State Trail - $350,000
When
complete, the Connector is expected to be over 250 miles and will link
communities between St. Petersburg and Titusville into a major destination
route that will allow residents and visitors to explore Central Florida by
bicycle or foot. An estimated 75 percent of the trail corridor is already
developed and open to the public or funded for construction.
FDOT
Secretary Ananth Prasad said, “With the projects announced today, we will be
moving forward this year on virtually every gap within the Coast to Coast
Connector. FDOT is pleased to play such an instrumental role with our state and
local partners to help advance this ambitious trail project. It will provide an
exceptional experience and safe transportation route for our residents and
visitors.”
FDEP
Secretary Herschel T. Vinyard Jr. said, “FDOT continues to be a great partner
in the statewide trail effort. We are very excited that the Connector project
will be the first of many efforts to complete the Florida Greenways and Trails
Priority System.”
Senator
Andy Gardiner, Chair of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee for
Transportation, Tourism and Economic Development, has been a strong advocate
for the Connector and was instrumental in setting aside the new funding.
Senator
Gardiner said, “It is very rewarding to see the combined efforts of so many
come together to help close the gaps in the Coast to Coast Connector. These
projects represent a significant step forward for this exciting effort.”
The
Connector is a collaborative effort of many agencies and organizations,
including the eleven Central Florida metropolitan planning organizations that
signed a joint resolution last summer making the trail project a regional
priority.
Along
with more than nine other long distance corridors, the
Connector is a state priority in the 2013-17 Florida Greenways and Trails
System Plan (Plan), developed by the Florida Department of Environmental
Protection’s Office of Greenways and Trails, the lead entity for statewide
trail planning. The
plan outlines the vision for the Florida Greenways and Trails System, defining
the role of the system in advancing Florida’s economy, tourism, health,
transportation, recreation, conservation and quality of life.
President
& CEO of VISIT FLORIDA Will Seccombe said, “Florida is an incredibly
diverse destination with so much more to see and do than our visitors often
realize. Stretching from Tampa Bay to the Space Coast, the Coast to Coast
Connector will offer a unique opportunity for them to discover some of the Sunshine
State's most scenic greenways and trails.”
FDOT
will supervise development of the remaining Connector gaps, and local
governments or other managing agencies will be responsible for operation and
maintenance of the completed trail segments.
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